Report: Teenager with just one Liverpool appearance travels for Ajax clash

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Nat Phillips and Rhys Williams will travel with the Liverpool squad to Amsterdam ahead of the Champions League opener at Ajax on Wednesday night, according to the Mirror.

Where one door closes, another swings open.

And while the red half of Merseyside has been left shaken by the news that the finest defender on planet earth will be out of action for up to eight months, Virgil van Dijk’s sudden absence has at least created an opportunity for an exciting teenager and a budding fringe player.

Both Phillips and Williams are highly regarded within the walls of Melwood.

The former, a Bolton-born 23-year-old, helped Stuttgart secure promotion back to the Bundesliga last term during a fine loan spell and caught Klopp’s eye during a monstrous performance in Liverpool’s FA Cup triumph over Everton in January.

Williams is even more inexperienced, at just 19.

But after making his senior debut in the 7-2 thumping of Lincoln City four weeks ago, a game in which he started alongside Van Dijk at centre-half, the rapid rise of this England U21 international looks set to continue.

The Mirror believes that he and Phillips will be included in the matchday squad for the Champions League glamour tie with the European institution that is Ajax.

Joe Gomez and Fabinho are expected to start with Joel Matip joining Van Dijk on the sidelines, with Phillips and Williams providing back-up on the bench.